The School of Wellbeing

As rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm and eating disorders are on the up among young people, how can schools provide appropriate information and support for the young people in their classrooms? How can they bridge the gap between what they know matters—the impact of these issues on learning and life-long health—and the mounting day-to-day priorities and pressures of school life? This book provides unique insight into 12 projects that are helping to answer these questions and supporting teachers to make mental health and emotional wellbeing a key player in the school day. With a mix of longer-term initiatives and simple strategies that schools can put in place immediately, it explores mentoring and mindfulness, social action and sport, Lego play and poetry, the power of parents and the role of PSHE. It describes how these projects work practically and shares the impact they are having, increasing resilience and raising the aspirations and emotional wellbeing of the whole school community. As well as showcasing ideas that are making a difference, the book meets with the education leaders and charities behind the initiatives (including Place2Be, Step up to Serve, Kidscape, Mosaic, Diversity Role Models, Beat, Achievement for All and others) who offer advice and signpost useful information to support readers in getting these ideas off the ground in their schools. This book is a source of inspiration for headteachers, senior leadership teams, pastoral care teams, school counsellors and psychologists.